Why The GOP Lost

“As long as the GOP establishment continues to not only reject the liberty message, but actively drive away the young, diverse coalition that supports those principles, it will see results similar to Tuesday’s outcome.” –Ron Paul

As the shock of Romney’s loss starts to wear off, speculation and finger pointing have become the order of the day for establishment Republicans and tea party members. Rather than do the serious soul searching that they all need to do, many are choosing to lash out in the typical childish way at (you guessed it) Ron Paul supporters.

This morning a friend who I have worked with for several years in Northern Arizona decided to jump on the bandwagon and post the following statement on Facebook:

“Divided country – 50/50 split. Now we adjust to what we know, what we’ve seen, what we know will happen. Gather around like-minded people. We tried reaching out. It did not work. Unify w/folks who “see” as you do. The thinkers, do-ers, producers: 50% of US. Pay no mind to 0bama supporters or Ron Paul supporters who spew hate or division. That cycle’s over.”

Right, because attacking hate and division by spewing hate and division is a great way to bring people together. Brilliant logic.

Earlier this week Ron Paul supporters were also attacked and accused of costing Jonathan Paton the CD-1 election. Here’s an example of those attacks (this post was found on Facebook):

“Our friend Jonathan Paton – a great Republican – lost his race to represent the voters of Arizona’s 1st Congressional district because of a loser named Kim Allen. In other words, the Ron Paul people in Arizona intentionally sabotaged this race to get a liberal Democrat elected. Shame on you!”

While it’s easy to point fingers and get angry, that kind of reaction does little to get to the root of the problem. Yesterday Ron Paul released a statement on his Facebook page that I think puts everything into perspective. If the GOP and the tea party want to learn from their mistakes they would be wise to pay close attention to these words:

“America is over $16 trillion in debt. The “official” unemployment rate still hovers around 8%.

Our federal government claims the right to spy on American citizens, indefinitely detain them, and even assassinate them without trial.

Domestic drones fly over the country for civilian surveillance.

Twelve million fewer Americans voted in 2012 than in 2008, yet political pundits scratch their heads. It’s not hard to see why, though. To go along with endorsing a never-ending policy of bailouts, “stimulus packages,” and foreign military adventurism, the establishment of neither major party questions the assaults on Americans’ liberties I’ve named above. As my campaign showed, the American people are fed up. Many realized heading into Tuesday that regardless of who won the presidential election, the status quo would be the real victor. GOP leadership is now questioning why they didn’t perform better. They’re looking at demographic changes in the United States and implying minorities can only be brought into the party by loudly advocating for abandoning what little remains of their limited government platform and endorsing more statist policies.

As long as the GOP establishment continues to not only reject the liberty message, but actively drive away the young, diverse coalition that supports those principles, it will see results similar to Tuesday’s outcome.

A renewed respect for liberty is the only way forward for the Republican Party and for our country.

I urge all my Republican colleagues to join the liberty movement in fighting for a brighter future.”